COVID-19: Canada makes negative test report mandatory for travellers entering country
In a bid to stop the spread of coronavirus, Canadian authorities have said that all incoming passengers entering the country would be required to present test
In their latest bid to stop the spread of coronavirus, Canadian authorities have said that all incoming passengers entering the country would be required to undergo COVID-19 test. The announcement comes within a week after the country reported two cases of a mutant coronavirus first detected across Atlantic. In addendum to showing a negative test certificate, all the travellers would also be required to undergo an isolation period of 14 days upon their arrival in the country.
“The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests will need to be conducted within three days of boarding a flight, officials told a news conference.
Canada has reported over 577,266 cases and 15,498 fatalities from the lethal respiratory infection till now, the latest tally by John Hopkins University stated. Fearing that the health and economy of the country could be jeopardized even further, the Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic Leblanc stressed that the new airport measures could be placed “quickly”, but did not specify any particular date. He even revealed that all airports in the country would be monitored for infection constantly.
Meanwhile, stressing that frequent travels could sabotage residents’ security and spread COVID-19, country’s deputy chief public health officer Howard Njoo said, “We must iterate that now is not the time to travel". "Although most Canadians have heeded advice for non-essential travel, some Canadians are still travelling for non-essential reasons. This is deeply concerning," Njoo added.
Mutant virus spreads in US
Meanwhile, American health officials, on December 30, reported a new case of mutant coronavirus in the country’s most populated state California. The new infection, which came within 24 hours of the country reporting its initial case has now left experts concerned about the scale and speed of its spread as well the peril it causes, The “more lethal and transmissible” SarS CoV- 2 variant which was first reported in Brittan has spread to other nations including Spain, India amongst others.
Published By : Riya Baibhawi
Published On: 31 December 2020 at 14:20 IST